Optical logic gates have been the subject of research for several decades due to the possibility of achieving higher operating speeds than logic based on electronics. The advantages of digital signal processing in the optical domain include higher signal bandwidth, lower signal cross-talk, and greater protection against electronic eavesdropping.
In the development of optical signal processing, there is a desire for optical latches to provide optical memory to store optical information being processed. Exemplary embodiments of the present invention address this desire. The use of all-optical signal processing may also eliminate the need to convert signals from the optical domain into the electronic domain for processing using electronic signal processing circuitry, and then to re-convert the processed signals from the electronic domain back into the optical domain. Thus, all-optical signal processing may be advantageous to reduce the cost, electrical power requirement, size and weight compared to optical-to-electronic converters, electronic signal processing circuitry, and electronic-to-optical converters which are currently being used.
These and other advantages of exemplary embodiments of the present invention exemplary embodiment become evident to those skilled in the art.